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Make sure ahead of time that everything will be in place when you are ready to apply.

This resource page gives you details about the information introduced at Timing for Picking and Designing Your Project, including steps you'll need to take to be ready to apply electronically and information about deadlines and qualifying for continuous submission.

This document is appropriate for any research grant using electronic submission.

Table of Contents

Just the Facts

All activity codes use electronic application. To be sure, read the funding opportunity announcement (FOA).

Your institution has to sign up for an eRA Commons account.

Get deadlines and other information from your grants business office.

Preparing for Electronic Application

Ask your business office what approach it uses to submit electronic applications.

For example, your institution may have its own proprietary system that you will need to access. If this is the case, be alert for how the timing and instructions may differ from NIH's description for Adobe forms.

You may need extra lead time for training on how to use your organization's system. And your business office's role might require additional or different internal due dates for you to finish your part of the application. That's why you should find out about deadlines so you can plan ahead.

Keep in mind that some of NIH's instructions may not match how your organization's system works. NIH describes applying directly to Grants.gov using the grant application package. Your proprietary system may have its own forms, layouts, or form fields.

You can sign up for NIH's electronic submission listservs at Get Connected.

If you need help troubleshooting the application process, talk to staff in your business office. Your business official should be able to answer the question directly or know whether you should contact a system provider, the Grants.gov helpdesk, or the eRA helpdesk.

When Will You Apply?

Receipt dates vary by activity code and other factors.

The NIH Guide announcement for your FOA will give you a receipt date, a deadline for submitting your application electronically.

Note that your internal deadline is your key due date, not the NIH receipt date. Even so, the NIH receipt date will trigger other dates relevant to your submission.

Here is what you need to know about NIH receipt dates.

For an investigator-initiated application (including program announcements), you will apply by one of NIH's three standard receipt dates (except for institutional training grants), called cycles 1, 2, and 3.

New non-AIDS R01 applications are due February 5, June 5, and October 5.

If a standard deadline falls on a weekend or federal holiday, it moves to the next business day.

At NIAID, T32 and T35 training grants have only one annual deadline: September 25 for non-AIDS and January 7 for AIDS-related applications.

Each request for applications has its own (usually one-time) receipt date stated in the FOA.

Some program announcements also have their own special receipt dates; read the FOA to be sure.

Do You Qualify for Continuous Submission?

Peer reviewers with recent substantial service and members of the following groups can apply for an R01, R21, or R34 any time, regardless of a standard receipt date (this policy does not apply to RFAs or funding opportunity announcements that have only one receipt date).